Gamecocks now know their SEC basketball slate for 2015

The Southeastern Conference released its men’s basketball league schedule for the 2015 campaign on Friday evening during SEC Now on the newly launched SEC Network. The schedule, which features an 18-game slate, will see each of South Carolina’s contests broadcast with five games to be aired on the ESPN family of networks, 10 on the SEC Network and three on FSN.

The Gamecocks will host nine league contests at Colonial Life Arena during the upcoming season, including matchups with 2014 NCAA Championship Runner-Up Kentucky, Final Four participant Florida, Sweet 16 participant Tennessee, as well as home games versus Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, Texas A&M, Mississippi State and Arkansas.

South Carolina will face Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia and Arkansas in home-and-home series in 2015. With the above mentioned postseason teams from a year ago, the Gamecocks will also face 2014 Postseason NIT participants LSU, Georgia, Arkansas and Missouri, and CBI participant Texas A&M.

With the launch of the SEC Network, the scheduling of midweek games has been adjusted. In addition to the traditional Tuesday night games on ESPN and ESPNU, there will also be two games on the SEC Network. Wednesdays will feature two contests on the SEC Network, while Thursdays will highlight one game on either ESPN or ESPN2. Each of the SEC’s 126 games will be available to be seen from anywhere in the nation.

South Carolina begins conference action in Columbia for the first time since the 2011 season when defending SEC Regular-Season and Tournament Champion Florida visits Colonial Life Arena (Wed., Jan. 7, 7 p.m., SEC Network). The Gamecocks travel that weekend to Ole Miss (Sat., Jan. 10, TBD, FSN), before facing Alabama (Tues., Jan. 13, 7 p.m., SEC Network) in a home contest the following mid-week.

Carolina travels to Auburn (Sat., Jan. 17, TBD, SEC Network), before opening a stretch of three of the next four games at home when Tennessee travels to Columbia (Tues., Jan. 20, 9 p.m., ESPNU). The following contest will also be aired nationally on ESPN or ESPN2 when Kentucky (Sat., Jan. 24, Noon, ESPN/2) returns to Colonial Life Arena for the first time since a 72-67 Gamecock victory over the then-No. 17/15 Wildcats last March.

The Gamecocks will next face three straight opponents that advanced to the 2014 Postseason NIT, beginning with a trip to Baton Rouge to face LSU (Wed., Jan. 28, 7 p.m., SEC Network), before hosting Georgia (Sat., Jan. 31, 4 p.m., ESPNU), and next traveling to Arkansas (Tues., Feb. 3, 9 p.m., SEC Network). Carolina continues play on the road later that week at Vanderbilt (Sat., Feb. 7, TBD, FSN).

The middle stretch of February will see Carolina host another Postseason NIT participant in Missouri (Tues., Feb. 10, 7 p.m., SEC Network), before traveling to Kentucky (Sat., Feb. 14, 2 p.m., ESPN/2) and Georgia (Tues., Feb. 17, 7 p.m., SEC Network). The Gamecocks will play three of their final five games of the regular season at home, beginning with a matchup versus Texas A&M (Sat., Feb. 21, TBD, SEC Network), before traveling to Alabama (Tues., Feb. 24, 7 p.m., SEC Network) the following week.

Mississippi State (Sat., Feb. 28, TBD, SEC Network) travels to Columbia to conclude the month, and Carolina will host Arkansas (Thurs., March 5, 7 p.m., ESPN/2) on Senior Day, before concluding the regular season at Tennessee (Sat., March 7, TBD, FSN). The 2015 SEC Tournament will be held in Nashville with games played at Bridgestone Arena, March 11-15.